A book from the UNESCO Institute for Education describes Mixquic, a semi rural district of Mexico City, as a context for literacy and examines how a group of women who live there  helped each other learn to read and write through collaboration.

‘Literacy’ refers to the social practices of reading and writing, what, when and why people read and write as well as their ideas about reading and writing. Becoming literate is a complex process that goes beyond the notion of alphabetisation—learning the basic letters and sounds of a writing system—instead, it involves the development of knowledge about written language, the appropriation of literacy practices, and an understanding of how written language is used in the social world.

As in countless other Latin American communities, many women in Mixquic have had little or no formal schooling and rarely go very far from their neighbourhood. They encounter reading and writing – either as observers or participants – in the community churches, shops, library, news stands, post office, and in their homes.

It is important to understand the difference between access and availability to literacy. Availability refers to the physical presence of written materials while access refers to opportunities to use literacy and to learn about reading and writing. Literacy learning involves participating in situations where reading and writing occur and interacting with other readers and writers around print materials. For this reason unequal distribution of literacy should be seen in its social context and not as the result of individual will or capability.

Learning opportunities are most successful when based on local communicative and literacy practices. The author suggests:

• creating a friendly environment to minimise social distance between ‘those who know’ and 'those who do not'
• producing collectively cultural products such as calendars, posters or pamphlets based on learners´ local knowledge (for example, use of local medicinal herbs)
• reading books aloud together as a way of introducing written language use, helping learners follow extended text, and overcome their reluctance to participate or ask for help
• reading and discussing novels and stories together as a way of creating opportunities to reflect on the texts and their own lives
• using writing as a tool for learning by inviting learners to write about their experiences, even if their writing is not yet conventional
• encouraging learners to collectively revise their writing.

Adult education will continue to be of little value without adequate funding and the political will to promote research, develop innovative programmes and train instructors. In order to open spaces for learning literacy, adult educators need to:

• realise that the physical presence of written materials is not, on its own, enough to provide access to written culture
• put literacy education in the hands of trained instructors who understand the complexities of literacy learning and who are themselves fluent readers and confident writers
• understand local literacy practices, particularly reading and writing in out-of-school contexts
• develop cultural policies and practices that put literacy into a context (library programmes, local press, publications written by adult learners, etc)
• regard literacy as a social practice, situated in context, and not just the mechanical ability to decode and encode language
• create opportunities for reading and writing authentic texts and not just text books designed for adult learners.

Source(s):
‘Discovering literacy: access routes to written culture for a group of women in Mexico’ UNESCO Institute for Education, by Judy Kalman, 2005 Full document.

Funded by: National Academy of Education/Spencer Foundation

id21 Research Highlight: 6 September 2005

Further Information:
Judy Kalman
Departamento de Investigaciones Educativas
Calzada de los Tenorios No. 235
Col. Granjas Coapa
14330 México, D.F., México

Tel: +52 55 50612800
Fax: +52 55 56033957
Contact the contributor: jkalman@cinvestav.mx

UNESCO Institute for Education
Feldbrunnenstrasse 58
20148 Hamburg, Germany

Tel: +49 40 44804144
Fax: +49 404107723
Contact the contributor: uie@unesco.org

UNESCO Institute of Education

Other related links:
'Tackling illiteracy in rural areas'

'Universal literacy: essential for development?'

'Literacy skills – proven pathway out of poverty'

'Are literacy classes working for women in Mali?'

id21 education highlights 'literacy'